The geomagnetic field was quiet to unsettled on March 2. Solar wind speed at SOHO ranged between 356 and 458 km/s, weakly under the influence of effects from CH717.
Solar flux at 20h UTC on 2.8 GHz was 98.2 (decreasing 25.1 over the last solar rotation). The 90 day 10.7 flux at 1 AU was 103.7. The Potsdam WDC planetary A index was 6 (STAR Ap - based on the mean of three hour interval ap indices: 6.0). Three hour interval K indices: 21122311 (planetary), 31223311 (Boulder).
The background x-ray flux is at the class B2 level.
At the time of counting spots (see image time), spots were observed in 13 active regions using 2K resolution (SN: 186) and 9 active regions using 1K resolution (SN: 115) SDO images on the visible solar disk.
Region 12506 [S07W49] decayed slowly and quietly.
Region 12508 [N06W33] decayed slowly and quietly.
New region 12510 [N06E47] emerged on March 1 and
was numbered by SWPC the next day.
New region 12511 [N03E58] rotated into view on February 29 and received
its NOAA number two days later. SWPC includes AR S5145 in this region.
New region 12512 [N11E27] emerged on March 1 with SWPC numbering the
region the following day.
New region 12513 [N11E78] rotated into view.
Spotted regions not numbered (or interpreted differently) by SWPC:
S5141 [N09W16] decayed slowly and quietly.
S5145 [N07E58] decayed slowly and quietly.
S5147 [S11W03] was quiet and stable.
New region S5149 [S02E12 ] emerged with tiny spots.
New region S5150 [N16W50] emerged with a tiny spot.
New region S5151 [S14E27] emerged with a tiny spot.
New region S5152 [N07E38] emerged with a tiny spot.
C2+ flares:
Magnitude | Peak time (UT) | Location | AR | Recorded by | Comment |
February 29 - March 2: No obviously Earth directed CMEs were observed in available LASCO imagery.
[Coronal hole
history (since October 2002)]
[Compare today's report to the situation one solar rotation ago:
28 days ago
27 days ago
26 days ago]
A northern hemisphere coronal hole (CH719) was in an Earth facing position on March 1. A trans equatorial coronal hole (CH718) rotated across the central meridian on March 2.
Long distance low and medium frequency (below 2 MHz) propagation along paths north of due west over upper middle latitudes is fair. Propagation on long distance northeast-southwest paths is poor.
The geomagnetic field is expected to be quiet on March 3 becoming quiet to active on March 4-5 due to effects from CH719 and CH718.
Coronal holes (1) | Coronal mass ejection (2) | M and X class flares (3) |
1) Effects from a coronal hole could reach Earth within the
next 5 days. When the high speed stream has arrived the color changes to green.
2) Effects from a CME are likely to be observed at Earth within 96 hours.
3) There is a possibility of either M or X class flares within the next 48
hours.
Green: 0-30% probability, Yellow: 30-70% probability, Red: 70-100% probability.
(Click on image for 2K resolution).
4K resolution.
Compare to the previous day's image.
0.5K image
When available the active region map has a coronal hole polarity overlay where red (pink) is negative and blue is positive.
Data for all numbered solar regions according to the Solar Region Summary provided by NOAA/SWPC. Comments are my own, as is the STAR spot count (spots observed at or inside a few hours before midnight) and data for regions not numbered by SWPC or where SWPC has observed no spots. SWPC active region numbers in the table below and in the active region map above are the historic SWPC/USAF numbers.
Active region | Date numbered detected |
Spot count | Location at midnight | Area | Classification | SDO / HMI 4K continuum image with magnetic polarity overlays |
Comment | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
SWPC | Magnetic (SDO) |
SWPC | STAR | Current | Previous | ||||||
2K | 1K | ||||||||||
12506 |
2016.02.22 2016.02.24 |
5 | 20 | 9 | S07W48 | 0110 | CSO | DAO | images/AR_12506_20160301_2345.png |
area: 0160 |
|
12509 |
2016.02.25 2016.02.29 |
N09W14 |
location: N09W10 |
||||||||
S5131 | 2016.02.25 | N20W46 | |||||||||
12508 |
2016.02.26 2016.02.28 |
1 | N06W34 | 0002 | AXX | ||||||
S5134 | 2016.02.26 | S07W07 | |||||||||
S5136 | 2016.02.27 | S02W44 | |||||||||
S5137 | 2016.02.27 | S21W36 | |||||||||
S5138 | 2016.02.28 | N20W22 | |||||||||
S5140 | 2016.02.28 | S17E17 | |||||||||
S5141 | 2016.02.29 | 2 | 2 | N09W16 | 0006 | BXO | |||||
12511 |
2016.02.29 2016.03.02 |
3 | 5 | 2 | N05E57 | 0010 | BXO | CAO |
SWPC count includes AR S5145 area: 0040 location: N03E58 |
||
S5143 | 2016.02.29 | N24W32 | |||||||||
12512 |
2016.03.01 2016.03.02 |
3 | 10 | 4 | N11E28 | 0010 | BXO | DRI | area: 0040 | ||
S5145 | 2016.03.01 | 3 | 2 | N07E58 | 0030 | HAX | |||||
12510 |
2016.03.01 2016.03.02 |
3 | 4 | 2 | N05E51 | 0030 | CRO | HRX |
area: 0015 location: N06E47 |
||
S5147 | 2016.03.01 | 4 | 1 | S11W03 | 0011 | BXO | |||||
12513 | 2016.03.02 | 1 | 1 | 1 | N11E84 | 0060 | HSX |
location: N11E78 area: 0090 |
|||
S5149 | 2016.03.02 | 3 | 2 | S02E12 | 0007 | AXX | |||||
S5150 | 2016.03.02 | 1 | N16W50 | 0002 | AXX | ||||||
S5151 | 2016.03.02 | 1 | S14E27 | 0001 | AXX | ||||||
S5152 | 2016.03.02 | 1 | N07E38 | 0003 | AXX | ||||||
Total spot count: | 15 | 56 | 25 | ||||||||
Sunspot number: | 65 | 186 | 115 | (total spot count + 10 * number of spotted regions) | |||||||
Weighted SN: | 28 | 82 | 51 | (Sum of total spot count + classification weighting for each AR. Classification weighting: X=0, R=3, A/S=5, H/K=10) | |||||||
Relative sunspot number (Wolf number): | 72 | 84 | 92 | k * (sunspot number) As of February 19, 2015: k = 1.1 for SWPC, k = 0.45 for MSN 2K, k = 0.80 for MSN 1K (MSN=Magnetic Sunspot Number) |
Month | Average solar flux | International sunspot number (WDC-SILSO) (4) |
Smoothed sunspot number (4) | Average
ap (3) |
|
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Measured | 1 AU | ||||
2014.02 | 170.3 (cycle peak) |
166.3 | 146.1 (cycle peak) | 110.5 (+1.2) | 10.70 |
2014.04 | 143.9 | 144.8 | 112.5 | 116.4 (+2.1) (solar max) | 7.88 |
2015.01 | 141.9 | 137.3 | 93.0 | 89.3 (-2.9) | 9.46 |
2015.02 | 129.1 | 126.0 | 66.7 | 86.1 (-3.2) | 9.92 |
2015.03 | 125.9 | 124.6 | 54.5 | 82.2 (-3.9) | 16.14 |
2015.04 | 128.8 | 129.7 | 75.3 | 78.8 (-3.4) | 10.73 |
2015.05 | 120.0 | 122.6 | 88.8 | 76.0 (-2.8) | 8.29 |
2015.06 | 122.3 | 126.1 | 66.5 | 72.0 (-4.0) | 13.15 |
2015.07 | 107.0 | 110.8 | 66.4 | 68.2 (-3.8) | 8.83 |
2015.08 | 105.4 | 108.0 | 64.6 | 66.3 (-1.9) | 14.58 |
2015.09 | 101.7 | 102.7 | 78.1 | (66.0 projected, -0.3) | 15.78 |
2015.10 | 104.1 | 103.3 | 61.7 | (65.3 projected, -0.7) | 14.02 |
2015.11 | 109.3 | 106.9 | 63.2 | (63.2 projected, -2.1) | 12.09 |
2015.12 | 113.1 | 109.5 | 57.7 | (61.5 projected, -1.7) | 14.29 |
2016.01 | 103.4 | 100.1 | 56.6 | (59.8 projected, -1.7) | 9.4 |
2016.02 | 103.6 | 101.0 | 57.2 | (57.4 projected, -2.4) | 9.2 |
2016.03 | (97.5) | 3.4 (2A) / 52 (2B) / 79.5 (2C) | (54.5 projected, -3.1) | (6.2) |
1) Running average based on the daily 20:00 UTC observed solar flux value at
2800 MHz.
2A) Current impact on the monthly sunspot number based on the Boulder
(NOAA/SWPC) sunspot number (accumulated daily sunspots / month days).
2B)
Boulder SN current month average to date.
2C) STAR SDO 1K Wolf number 30 day
average.
3) Running average based on the quicklook and definitive Potsdam WDC ap
indices. Values in red are based on the definitive
international
GFZ Potsdam
WDC
ap indices.
4) Updated to new data set from WDC-SILSO on July 1, 2015
This report has been prepared by Jan Alvestad. It is based on the analysis of data from whatever sources are available at the time the report is prepared. All time references are to Universal Time. Comments and suggestions are always welcome.
SDO images are courtesy of NASA/SDO and the AIA, EVE, and HMI science teams.